NONPROFIT

FOTSCH FAMILY FOUNDATION GIVES $7 MILLION FOR MARQUETTE LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT CENTER

The Fotsch Family Foundation is providing a $7 million gift to support a new leadership center within Marquette University’s Opus College of Engineering.

The Nashotah-based family foundation’s donation will establish a new endowed leadership center and director position in the engineering college, building on its existing Excellence in Leadership program.

The gift will also support Innovation Alley, an effort between the Opus College and the College of Business Administration to foster innovation in Milwaukee’s business community.

The Fotsch Family Foundation — which supports Catholic and educational causes, as well as social services throughout the community — has given a total of $14 million in gifts to Marquette’s multi-year Time to Rise campaign. The university has now surpassed $566 million in funds raised toward its $750 million goal.

The foundation’s previous gifts have supported Marquette student scholarships, the Grotto to the Blessed Virgin Mary behind St. Joan of Arc Chapel, and the new business school building that is under construction.

—Lauren Anderson, staff writer

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The Waukesha Rotary will host its annual Pancake Festival on Saturday, April 2, from 8-11 a.m. at Waukesha South High School, 401 East Roberta Ave. The event benefits other local nonprofits. More information is available at portal.clubrunner.ca/5717.

The Shalom Center will host a 40th anniversary reception on Thursday, April 7, from 5:30-8 p.m. at the Student Center at University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 900 Wood Road, Kenosha. More information is available by emailing colemant@shalomcenter.org.

Blue Lotus Farm & Retreat Center will host its annual roast on Wednesday, May 4, from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at West Bend Mutual Insurance Co.’s Prairie Center at 1900 S. 18th Ave. in West Bend. The event will honor Tim Galante and benefit Blue Lotus. More information is available at bluelotusfarm.org/2022-roast.

DONATION ROUNDUP

Bucks center Brook Lopez recently provided $70,000 in donated books and funds to three Milwaukee Public Schools and the Next Door Foundation in honor of Read Across America Day. | Meijer donated $50,000 each to Boys & Girls Clubs in Milwaukee, West Bend and Kenosha as part of a $1.2 million commitment to the Clubs nationally. | Northwestern Mutual recently awarded $310,000 in grants to nonprofits nationwide through its 2022 Community Service Awards, a recognition of its financial advisors who are making a difference in their communities through volunteerism. | Molson Coors recently made a donation of $1 million to the Thurgood Marshall College Fund to fund its leadership development and education programs for students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities over the next three years. | North Shore Bank’s Race for the Hungry event at El Rey Food Mart raised $652 in food to be donated to the Milwaukee Christian Center. | Hispanic Professionals of Greater Milwaukee received a $15,000 donation from the PepsiCo Foundation.

nonprofit SPOTLIGHT

BENEDICT CENTER

1849 N. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Ste. 101, Milwaukee 414-347-1774 | benedictcenter.org Twitter: @BenedictCenter

Year founded: 1974

Mission statement: We help women affected by the criminal justice system find hope and lead safer and healthier lives, while advocating for a system of justice that is fair and treats everyone with dignity and respect. Primary focus of your nonprofit organization: Community-based treatment and support for women in the criminal justice system, re-entry services, street outreach and drop-in centers for women in the street sex trade (including sex trafficking), and housing advocacy. Other focuses of your nonprofit organization: Cross-sector collaboration to improve systems and solve issues at their root causes, interfaith collaborations, housing and sexual assault advocacy. Number of employees at this location: 22

Key donors: Twenty other private/corporate foundations, including the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, Catholic Community Foundation of Milwaukee, United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County’s Milwaukee Health Improvement Fund, Jane Bradley Pettit Foundation, Forest County Potawatomi Foundation, We Energies Foundation, Patrick and Anna Cudahy Fund, and Spectrum.

Executive leadership: Jeanne Geraci, executive director; Melinda Hughes, director of programs and operations; Joan Prentki, director of finance; Cindy Nicholson, development coordinator

Board of directors: Margaret Bailey-Stewart (president), Tricia Baker (vice president), Kevin M. Flaherty (treasurer), Sr. Linda Szocik (secretary), Shelly Boehm, Diane DuBois, Jamy Malatesta, Mark Peters, Kisha Shanks and Cynthia M. Wynn Is your organization actively seeking board members for the upcoming term? Yes, we are seeking diverse candidates who are passionate about our mission and ready to share time, gifts and talent. Ways the business community can help your nonprofit: » Learn more about us. Help spread the word! » Funding through grants or sponsorship of our annual Women and Justice Event. » Volunteer or in-kind professional services. » Give people with criminal records a second chance for employment or housing. Key fundraising events: Women & Justice Event, house parties and Giving Tuesday